What radio traffic scheduling software has to get right
Radio traffic scheduling software manages the commercial inventory of a station. It takes orders, holds the copy, decides which spot lands in which break on which day, builds the log the automation plays, reconciles what aired against what was sold, and produces the invoices and affidavits that turn airtime into revenue.
Stated that way it sounds like a solved problem. In practice, at most stations, traffic is a separate system from the automation and a third system from the music scheduler, and the seams between them are where the work lives: a log exported here, imported there, an as-aired file that arrives late, a discrepancy report someone reconciles by hand on the second of the month, an affidavit request that means digging through recordings.
AirWaves removes the seams by removing the separation. Traffic runs on the same database as the playout engine, so the as-aired record used to reconcile and bill is the engine’s own account of what it actually played.
Orders, copy and spot placement
Order entry
Full order construction with flights, dayparts, rates, rotations, separation requirements and product protection — entered once, in one place.
Copy management
Copy and instructions attached to the order and carried through to the cart, with rotators for multi-copy schedules and expiry handling.
Automatic placement
Traffic scheduling places every spot against inventory, dayparts, competitive separation and priority, then builds the log.
Break construction
Breaks built to your clock with separation rules honoured, local avails defined per station and per affiliate.
Multi-station scope
Cluster and network scope built in, so a group is one system with one inventory picture rather than five copies of the same software.
Direct-to-air
Approved orders flow straight into the schedule through your approval workflow — sale to broadcast in minutes.
Reconciliation against what actually aired
Reconciliation is the part of traffic that quietly costs the most staff time, and almost all of that cost is an integration artifact. When traffic and playout are separate systems, the as-aired data has to travel — and every trip introduces late files, format mismatches, missing entries and discrepancies that a person resolves by hand.
In AirWaves the playout engine writes the as-aired record into the same database traffic reads. Reconciliation is therefore continuous rather than a monthly event: spots reconcile as they air, makegoods are identified while there is still time to place them in the flight, and month-end is a review rather than an excavation.
And because the Skimmer records the air continuously and knows the log, the audio proof is attached to the reconciliation. Proof of performance stops being a request to traffic and becomes a link you send.
Billing, accounts receivable and the general ledger
AirWaves includes broadcast accounting rather than an export to it.
- Accrual-on-airing billing driven by verified as-aired data, so revenue recognises when the spot ran, not when someone got round to invoicing.
- Double-entry journals and a full general ledger with a lean broadcast chart of accounts — not a billing module pretending to be accounting.
- Accounts receivable with ageing, statements and collections workflow.
- Network clearance billing — bill on cleared spots across a national network from one ledger.
- On-air yield and revenue reporting from the same ledger that billed the spot, so sales, programming and ownership argue about strategy rather than about whose numbers are right.
One contract, one invoice, every placement — including the ones that are not on the air. A banner ad on your station website is tracked automatically and routed through the same traffic system as the on-air spot, which no competitor can claim.
Network traffic, affiliates and clearance
Running a network multiplies every traffic problem by the number of affiliates, and most systems answer that with spreadsheets and email. AirWaves treats the network as a first-class scope.
- Affiliate management with cash and barter orders, per-affiliate local avails and split copy that fires automatically at each station.
- Affidavits and clearance collected back from affiliates — whether they run AirWaves or someone else’s automation.
- Billing on cleared spots across the whole network from a single ledger, rather than reconciling per market.
- Automatic barter merge — multiple traffic types merged into one log without a human deciding which system wins.
Combined with syndication, a show can go out to unlimited affiliates with local breaks and split copy firing automatically, and the cleared spots flow straight back into traffic for affidavits and network billing.
Sales, CRM and the pipeline
The rep is the beginning of the traffic chain, and in most stations they are the part with the worst software. AirWaves gives sales its own surface on the same data.
Sales associate portal
Remote, on-site order entry so a rep can write an order in the client’s office and have it in the system before they are back in the car.
CRM & proposals
Clients, contacts, pipeline, proposals and approvals tracked against the actual orders and the actual revenue.
Workflow
Tasks and approvals across sales, production and traffic, so a spot waiting on copy is visible rather than folklore.
On-air yield
Inventory and yield analysis from the billing ledger — what your inventory is actually worth, by daypart.
Client portal
Advertisers log in to see and hear their own schedule as aired, which removes an entire category of phone call.
Political ad research
Political files are public. AirWaves scans competitors’ public inspection files and surfaces every political buy on their stations — who bought, which campaign or PAC, how much, and when it aired.
What to look for in traffic scheduling software
- Where does the as-aired data come from? If it is a file imported from another vendor’s system, reconciliation will always be manual work.
- Is billing accrual-on-airing, from verified data? Anything else is an estimate you correct later.
- Is there a real general ledger, or an export to one? Two systems means two closes.
- Can a rep enter an order from the field? Re-keying orders in the office is a tax on every sale.
- How long does proof of performance take? If the answer is measured in hours, it is costing you renewals.
- Does the network scope actually exist? Clearance across affiliates is either built in or it is a spreadsheet.
- Will it run against the automation you already own? Traffic needs your air chain least of any module — a vendor that insists on replacing it first is selling you a migration, not a traffic system.
Traffic scheduling that runs against third-party playout
Traffic is the module stations most often want to replace first, and it is the one that needs your air chain least. AirWaves Traffic exports spot logs your existing automation imports, and reconciles the as-aired data it sends back — so orders, copy, placement, billing, accounts receivable, the general ledger, affidavits and network clearance can all move to AirWaves while RCS, WideOrbit, Zetta, Simian, ENCO, Rivendell, StationPlaylist or NexGen keeps putting the station on air exactly as it does today.
Radio traffic scheduling software, answered
Radio traffic scheduling software manages the commercial inventory of a station: it takes advertising orders, holds the copy, decides which spot goes in which break on which day, generates the daily log the automation plays, reconciles what actually aired against what was ordered, and produces the invoices and affidavits. It is the system that turns sold airtime into money. In most stations it is separate software from the automation and from the music scheduler, which is why so much of the work is re-keying and reconciling.
It sits on the same database as the automation, so the as-aired data used for reconciliation and billing is the playout engine’s own record of what it played — not a log file exported, emailed, imported and hand-corrected. That removes an entire class of month-end work. It also means a spot can go from a sold order to on-air placement in minutes, and that a banner ad on the station website bills through the same traffic system as the on-air spot, on one contract and one invoice.
Yes. Billing is accrual-on-airing, driven by verified as-aired data, with double-entry journals, accounts receivable, a lean broadcast chart of accounts and a full general ledger. Revenue, receivables, clearance and on-air yield reporting all come from the same ledger that billed the spot, so there is one set of numbers for programming, sales and ownership rather than three that need reconciling.
Yes. Network traffic covers affiliate management, cash and barter orders, split copy, local break definitions per affiliate, affidavits and clearance, with billing on cleared spots across a national network from a single ledger. Affiliates can be running AirWaves or someone else’s automation — clearance data flows back either way.
Yes. A sales associate portal gives reps remote, on-site order entry, and approved orders can flow straight into the schedule through whatever approval workflow you define — so a spot sold in a client’s office can hit the log from the field the same day. CRM, proposals, workflow and on-air yield tools sit alongside it, so the pipeline, the order and the invoice are one continuous record.
Because the Skimmer records your air continuously and knows the log, each advertiser’s spot is isolated automatically as it airs. Proof of Performance HQ collects every occurrence with its timestamp, and a branded client portal lets the advertiser log in and hear their own schedule as aired — no request to traffic, no digging through recordings. Affidavits, invoices and as-aired reports all come out of that same verified data.
Yes, and it is the most common way stations start. AirWaves Traffic exports spot logs your current automation imports, and reconciles the as-aired data it returns for billing, affidavits and clearance. Your air chain does not move at all.
Explore the rest of the platform
Every AirWaves module shares one engine, one database and one login — and every one of them also runs standalone against the automation system you already own.
See AirWaves Traffic running your station
Book a walkthrough with an engineer who has actually run a radio station, or call 1-877-224-1656. No bots, no phone tree.